harm

noun \ ˈhärm \

|Updated on: 6 Jul 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: harm in a Sentence

Definition of harm

1 : physical or mental damage : injury

the amount of harm sustained by the boat during the storm

2 : mischief, hurt

I meant you no harm.

See harm defined for English-language learners

See harm defined for kids

Examples of harm in a Sentence

They threatened him with bodily harm.
The scandal has done irreparable harm to his reputation.
She'll do anything to protect her children from harm.
They have suffered serious physical harm.
These new regulations could cause lasting harm to small businesses.

Recent Examples of harm from the Web

Lead can cause devastating harm in children, stunting their intellectual growth and affecting cardiovascular, hormone and immune systems.

— New York Times, "820 Children Under 6 in Public Housing Tested High for Lead," 1 July 2018
There are many different strains of E. coli, a bacterium, and most of them live in our guts and don’t cause any harm.

— julia belluz, Vox, "The romaine lettuce E. Coli outbreak is finally over," 29 June 2018
Toxic stress can cause irreparable harm to these kids.

— belinda luscombe, Time, "The Doctor Who Discovered Lead in Flint's Water on What Went Wrong and How to Fix It," 28 June 2018
While Kearse gives us a blueprint for ethical consumption of the work of artists who cause such harm, Cleage suggests there can be none.

— danielle jackson, Longreads, "On Mourning, Learning a More Sober Fandom, and Letting Go," 28 June 2018
If American colonists won their independence, that would cause harm to British interests and open new trade opportunities in North America and elsewhere for those who allied themselves with the colonists.

— alice george, Smithsonian, "The American Revolution Was Just One Battlefront in a Huge World War," 28 June 2018
The resulting soil can cloud the water and cause serious harm to the fish and other wildlife.

— michigan wildlife council, Detroit Free Press, "Fishing enthusiasts hooked on conservation," 26 June 2018
Trump's executive order comes on the heels of days of sustained outrage, with his administration being accused of potentially causing irreparable harm to innocent minors, including infants.

— robert newhouse, Teen Vogue, "Trump Signed an Executive Order to End Family Separation, But It Comes at a Cost," 20 June 2018
Top medical and science groups have denounced the Trump administration's policy to separate immigrant families at the border, joining a wave of medical professionals condemning the policies as causing long-term harm to children.

— todd ackerman, Houston Chronicle, "Top medical, science groups sharply denounce Trump's family separation policy," 20 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'harm.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of harm

Middle English, from Old English hearm; akin to Old High German harm injury, Old Church Slavonic sramŭ shame

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

harm Synonyms

harm

verb

Definition of harm

harmed; harming; harms

transitive verb

: to damage or injure physically or mentally : to cause harm (see ¹harm) to

No animals were harmed in the making of the film.

the national interest … was gravely harmed by this attack
—Elmer Davis

—

harmer

noun

See harm defined for English-language learners

Examples of harm in a Sentence

He would never intentionally harm his children.
chemicals that could harm the environment
The scandal has seriously harmed his reputation.

Recent Examples of harm from the Web

Can departmental policies nudge researchers towards lower-carbon modes of travel without harming a university’s global research reputation?

— mejs hasan, WIRED, "New University Rules Encourage Scientists to Avoid Air Travel," 3 July 2018
View Sample Sign Up Now When used in animals, the drugs kill off pests by harming the insects’ nervous systems.

— alexandra sifferlin, Time, "How a Drug For Pets May Help Prevent Zika and Malaria," 2 July 2018
Russia’s goals were to undermine public faith in the US democratic process, denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm her electability and potential presidency.

— chuck todd, NBC News, "Trump continues to deny Russia interfered in 2016. Here's why that's a problem.," 2 July 2018
The prosecution, however, have argued that the documents the reporters possessed were secret and could harm Myanmar’s national security.

— shibani mahtani, Washington Post, "Myanmar judge to decide next week whether to try case of Reuters journalists held for 200 days," 2 July 2018
The whole point of ICE is to protect the American people from illegals who would do us harm physically and financially.

— Fox News, "Judge Jeanine: The rise of socialism," 1 July 2018
And one of the state's universities has led the way in researching a new system for caviar production, called reservoir ranching, that could drastically grow the state's output without harming the environment.

— bailey loosemore, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky is swimming with potential to take over the US caviar market," 28 June 2018
George V was soon convinced that receiving his cousin in Britain, along with the tsar’s allegedly pro-German wife, would not only compromise the national interest but harm the British monarchy.

— The Economist, "How the royal houses of Europe abandoned the Romanovs," 28 June 2018
On Monday, the United States Supreme Court overturned almost entirely a lower court ruling that had invalidated several political districts in Texas for harming the voting power of racial minorities.

— henry gass, The Christian Science Monitor, "Supreme Court ruling has 'huge' implications for voting rights," 25 June 2018

Origin and Etymology of harm

see ¹harm

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

harm Synonyms

Synonyms

blemish, bloody, break, compromise, crab, cripple, cross (up), damage, deface, disfigure, endamage, flaw, hurt, impair, injure, mar, spoil, vitiate;

Antonyms

doctor, fix, mend, patch, rebuild, recondition, reconstruct, renovate, repair, revamp;

Near Antonyms

cure, heal, help, rectify, rehabilitate, remedy;

edit, remodel, revise;

ameliorate, better, enhance, enrich, improve, meliorate, perfect, refine;

erode, scour, wash out, wear (away);

blight, tarnish;

dent, ding, dint;

botch, gum (up), queer;

lacerate, wound;

disable, hamstring, lame, maim, mangle, mutilate, torment, torture;

annihilate, bang up, bash, batter, clobber, crush, dash, decimate, demolish, desolate, destroy, devastate, do in, pulverize, raze, ruin, scourge, shatter, smash, tear down, total, waste, wipe out, wreck;

Synonym Discussion of harm

injure, harm, hurt, damage, impair, mar mean to affect injuriously. injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success.

- badly injured in an accident

harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss.

- careful not to harm the animals

hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings.

- hurt by their callous remarks

damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness.

- a table damaged in shipping

impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution.

- years of smoking had impaired his health

mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement.

- the text is marred by many typos

HARM Defined for English Language Learners

harm

noun

Definition of harm for English Language Learners

: physical or mental damage or injury : something that causes someone or something to be hurt, broken, made less valuable or successful, etc.

harm

verb

Definition of harm for English Language Learners

: to cause hurt, injury, or damage to (someone or something) : to cause harm to (someone or something)

HARM Defined for Kids

harm

noun \ ˈhärm \

Definition of harm for Students

: physical or mental damage : injury

The storm did little harm to the sheltered beach.

Synonym Discussion of harm

harm, injury, and damage mean an act that causes loss or pain. harm can be used of anything that causes suffering or loss.

- The frost did great harm to the crops.

injury is likely to be used of something that has as a result the loss of health or success.

- She suffered an injury to the eyes.

damage stresses the idea of loss (as of value or fitness).

- The fire caused much damage to the furniture.

harm

verb

Definition of harm for Students

harmed; harming

: to cause hurt, injury, or damage to

Too much sun can harm your skin.

Law Dictionary

harm

noun

legal Definition of harm

: loss of or damage to a person's right, property, or physical or mental well-being : injury

—

harm

transitive verb

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Definition of harm

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harm

Definition of harm

harmer

Examples of harm in a Sentence

Recent Examples of harm from the Web

Origin and Etymology of harm

harm Synonyms

Synonyms

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HARM Defined for English Language Learners

harm

Definition of harm for English Language Learners

harm

Definition of harm for English Language Learners

HARM Defined for Kids

harm

Definition of harm for Students

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harm

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Law Dictionary

harm

legal Definition of harm

harm

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